Legislative Update

The second session of the 114th General Assembly of the Tennessee Legislature for 2026 began on January 13th and is expected to focus on key issues such as education reform, tax cuts, and infrastructure improvements. The session is anticipated to last until late April. 

Education: There will probably be a focus on expanding Governor Lee's Education Freedom Act, which previously approved 20,000 private school scholarships. Lawmakers are expected to discuss increasing this number to meet demand.

Taxation: There are discussions around eliminating the state grocery tax and implementing a sales tax holiday for guns and ammunition. Both parties are considering various tax cuts, with a focus on balancing the budget amid declining revenues.

Infrastructure and Immigration: Proposed legislation is aimed at enhancing local government property tax caps and addressing immigration enforcement.

Budget Considerations: Due to declining state revenues, the session may be characterized by a tighter budget which may influence the scope of new investments and projects.

On the first day of the legislative session, the House passed HB 884 (Todd) which would expand the state’s definition of adult-oriented businesses to include commercial establishments. This was a bill that was carried over from the last legislative session. Several bills passed on first introduction, including several pieces of immigration legislation — two of which were spearheaded by Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson.  

As we are aware, hundreds of bills are filed during a legislative session. The following are some of the bills we are considering following as the legislative committee: 

SB 1587 (Johson) HB1706 (Zachary):  This would make it a misdemeanor for a person who resides in the U.S. illegally to operate a motor vehicle, further requiring the arresting law enforcement agency to notify federal immigration authorities. This comes after a law passed in the last session that also made it a misdemeanor for undocumented immigrants to use an out-of-state driver’s license in Tennessee. This bill was sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee and the House Transportation Subcommittee in January and remains in those two committees. There are several other immigration bills filed in the legislature with the intention of making Tennessee a “Model for the Nation” in immigration.

SB 1486 (Taylor) HB2018 (Cochran): requires a memorandum of understanding between local law enforcement agencies and federal officials regarding the enforcement of federal immigration laws. The local law enforcement agencies would be required to comply with immigration detainers ordered by federal immigration authorities. This was sent to the Senate Judiciary Committee, where action has been deferred until March 10, 2026. It was assigned to the Departments and Agencies subcommittee in the House on February 4, 2026.  

SB1712 (Johnson) HB1697 (McCalmon): As introduced, authorizes a county mayor and the chief executive officer of a municipality to order the flags flown on county or municipal property to be lowered to half-staff to honor the death of a prominent citizen of that county or municipality. This has been placed on the Senate Consent Calendar for February 23, 2026. It has been referred to the House State and Local Government Committee for March 4, 2026.

SB0831 (Hensley) HB1159 (Lynn): would require a voter to designate on the voter registration record a political party with which the voter is affiliated in order to vote in primary elections for such political party.  This bill was introduced in the Senate, passed on first and second consideration and was referred to the State and Local Government Committee on February 12, 2026. In the House, it was referred to the State & Local Government Committee on February 17, 2026.  

SB0367 (Briggs) HB0458 (Rudd): would make various changes to election laws regarding voter registration, absentee and early voting, voter list maintenance, tabulation and recording of votes, and voter identification. The bill has several provisions which increase the security around insuring that non-citizens of the US are not registered to vote, including having the words, “Not Eligible to Vote” stamped on their driver’s license or photo identification. This bill has already made its way through both the Senate and the House and has been sent to the Governor for his signature.  

SB0936 (Rose) HB1271 (Cochran): As introduced, declares that the policy of this state is that there are only two sexes, a biological male, and a biological female. This has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee. No action in the Senate at this point.

SB 2347 (Hensley) HB1530 (Warner): As introduced, exempts from the state sales and use tax the retail sale of food and food ingredients. This was referred to the House Finance, Ways, and Means Subcommittee for 1/28/2026 and placed behind the budget on February 4, 2026. The bill was referred to the Senate Finance Ways and Means Committee on February 5, 2026.  There are several bills regarding the exemption of sales tax on food. We will follow this one and try to keep up with this general idea.

SB0593 (Walley) HB0224 (Haston): would establish the School District Capital Improvements Trust Act allowing local education agencies to establish irrevocable investment trusts to fund long-term capital improvements. The legislation details the actions that would be required of the local boards of education, and the comptroller of the treasury would have oversight authority. This bill was referred to the General Subcommittee of the Senate Education Committee on February 4, 2026 and was assigned to the Finance Ways and Means Subcommittee in the House on February 3, 2026.

SB1889 (Taylor) HB1708 (Capley) Motor Vehicles: As introduced, requires an applicant for a driver license who cannot speak and read English sufficiently to be issued a restricted license for one year and to re-take the written driver license examination in English to be issued a driver license thereafter; requires evidence of U.S. citizenship, lawful permanent residence, or temporary lawful resident status prior to registering vehicles. This bill was placed on the Senate Transportation and Safety Committee for February 25, 2026. It was referred to the House Transportation Committee on February 17, 2026.

The progress of federal legislation in 2026 includes several key developments:

*13,547 bills and resolutions are currently before the US Congress, with about 7% expected to become law.

*The Fiscal Year 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act has been passed by the House and Senate providing $194.9 billion in discretionary funding.

*The FY 2026 Appropriations package was signed into law, funding the federal government through September 30, 2026.

The FY 2026 appropriations process concluded after an extended period of negotiations, reflecting ongoing disagreements between the House and Senate over topline spending levels and policy provisions.

The most viewed bill in the last week was the SAVE ACT.